When we first looked at building our farm in 2018, we made a few money-saving decisions, the most important is that we purchased our milk herd from a retiring farmer and we also purchased his milking parlour equipment. It was the right decision at the time. The equipment dates from around 2004/05 and was perfectly serviceable, our installers replaced some tubing but otherwise, the milking parlour was in good shape. It is a mature technology.
Now, we are building a brand new milk parlour because our milking cows are moving from the old farm to the new farm. So we are looking at brand new equipment this time because, after 20 years of daily service, the old cattle parlour's systems need to be replaced. Fear not it will not be destroyed instead good chunks will end up on Facebook's marketplace and be sold to other farmers for spare parts or expansion of their current systems.
All our cattle are chipped, nothing unusual there, we have sensors throughout the farm, and our milking cows also have sensors in the rumen (e.g. the first stomach) which tell us everything about the cow (especially gut health and temperature). For example, we know when the cows are overheating in the summer.
Right now we test our milk every month, a company comes in and adds some measuring and sampling equipment to our milking machines and tests the milk. The tests check many things (proteins, fat, contamination, microbes, etc). With the "future" new farm manager and the cattle foreman, we were looking at the new offerings for milk parlours. Granted some of the technology is well beyond what we need, as all our milk is transformed. The new technology is amazing. It can take daily milk samples for each animal and keep track of its source. The question is do we need all that?
In terms of cost, we are looking at anywhere between ₤ 2,000 and ₤ 4,000 per stall (excluding the building). Our herd is small but will double next year so that we can meet the demand for our butter. We are therefore looking for a parlour that can accommodate around 50 cows at a time. So that milking can be done quickly (frees up labour and is more comfortable for the cows). The current facilities for the goat remain unchanged, they were modern five years ago, as there were no suitable secondhand systems available. The base price level is dictated by the level of equipment that can be added at different points in the production cycle.
We have not made a decision yet. There are four governing issues; speed of use, convenience for the cattle, ease of maintenance and overall cost. They are in order of importance ease of use and cattle comfort. It's a hard job as we milk the cows about every 12 hours (6 am and 5pm). Generally, morning and evening milking staff is different, but the foreman is there for both shifts (a long long day), but with the farm manager in the new year it will reduce the hours our cattle foreman has to spend on the farm. Also on weekends, my wife and I are usually involved in at least one of the milking rounds per day.
Note: I got a question recently on our waste, specifically on the whey (a by-product from butter making), and the short answer is there is no waste. the whey is sold to the food industry. Whey (protein-rich) is needed in many products (including baby formula). Because our milk is biological it commands a premium price.
Note2: I was asked if we use many sheepdogs. The answer is no we do not. As we don't have any sheep. The goat herders usually have a "Judas goat" that the entire herd follows, but again this is specific to the type of herd we have (cow and goats). Most cattle come when you call, we always bring either a bit of feed or more than likely we are calling them to go to a new "greener" pasture. Cows will NEVER miss an opportunity to go to a new field (except for bulls...they can be tricky).
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